Key milestone lift for Big Carl
The world’s largest crane, Big Carl, lifted the first major section of pre-fabrication, unit 1’s containment liner cup into place towards the end of December. The liner cup lift was a key Project milestone and the first major lift for the SGC-250, otherwise known as ‘Big Carl’.
The process needed close collaboration between 60 team members from the Sarens crane team, Tissot riggers, EDF teams, Bylor and the Nuclear Island teams.
Tissot welders worked for more than five months manufacturing the 170-tonne steel containment liner cup.
Specialist formwork starts to take shape
Balfour Beatty is receiving parts of a specialised, one-of-a-kind formwork on Site for the connection between the outfall gallery and outfall pond shaft. This part of the cooling water system will mark the final point on the water’s journey around the power station before it makes its way back to the Bristol Channel.
The formwork, supplied by Special Formwork in Aldridge in the West Midlands, was put through a thorough design process and trial build off-Site. It will be assembled on Site and lifted into place in one complete piece.
Concrete will then be poured around it to form a smooth bend, referred to as the ‘elbow bend’, which rounds off a 90˚ angle at the connection point. When complete, the formwork will measure close to 10m tall and 10m wide. The giant structure is temporary; once the concrete is cured the formwork will be dismantled and removed from the tunnel, ready to be reused for Unit 2.
Work begins on Nuclear Island permanent rooms
The first vertical walls on the Nuclear Island have been installed and work has begun on constructing the first permanent rooms. The Mechanical and Electrical Safeguard Buildings will have 11 storeys when complete and will support the permanent equipment for the Reactor Building.
Nick Povey, Project Engineer said: “These are the first structures to go up within the Nuclear Island.”
The project is a collaboration between EDF’s delivery team and Bylor’s Site-based teams of steel fixers and joiners.
Bylor focuses on concrete pours
Taking more than 31 hours, the first concrete pour for Unit 2’s Nuclear Island Common Raft has been successfully completed by the Bylor team. During the pour, the team placed 476 tonnes of reinforcement and poured 1,868m3 of concrete.
Made up of a thick reinforced concrete platform, the second Common Raft is identical to Unit 1’s Nuclear Island. To achieve the second J0 milestone, they will need 4,400 tonnes of rebar to construct the cross-shaped structure.